Crude oil prices dipped this morning before bouncing back in afternoon trading at the NYMEX. (image: ft.com)

Fresh tidbits of positive economic news brought increases in crude and heating oil prices at the NYMEX for the second day in a row today. Official data released on Thursday showed a small decrease in new unemployment claims this week, an increase in pending home sales during July, and a rise in factory orders for commercial airplanes and other oil-dependent products. Those economic factors provided primary support to oil prices, while Hurricane Earl’s threat to East Coast refining activity and an oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico added secondary support. The price of crude closed near $75 per barrel, the middle of the $70 to $80 range it has been contained by in recent weeks. US stock markets also posted gains today, helping to lift oil prices by building general economic optimism. The increase in the market price for heating oil will likely bring a modest increase in retail prices tomorrow. Despite Wednesday and Thursday’s short-term gains, medium- and long-term oil prices show few sings of staging a sustained climb under huge supplies and general economic uncertainty.

Today’s Closing Prices at the NYMEX
Crude oil (October 2010 contract): Up 1.5 percent, $75.02 a barrel
Heating oil (October 2010 contract): Up 1.5 percent

Hurricane Earl at it strongest at 2 am on September 2, when winds speeds reached up to 159 mph. (image: NASA via WSJ.com)

Although Hurricane Earl was downgraded to a category 3 storm on Thursday afternoon, it’s still a whopper of the storm whose effects could soon be felt in much of the Northeast. According to a report by the Washington Post released at 2:30 pm Eastern time on Thursday,

Forecasters were trying to determine whether the storm would stay offshore as it headed up the Northeast coast or bring hurricane-force winds to Long Island and the New England coastal area.

If the storm does move closer to the East Coast as it moves north, coastal areas of the Northeast will get most of Earl’s intense wind and rain, while inland areas may see few effects. At the moment, Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Long Island are most likely to see serious tropical storm conditions over the next two days or so.

Those areas are home to many heating oil users, and to help them prepare for Earl’s arrival, the Energy Communications Council (which is funded by the National Oilheat Research Alliance) issued a press release offering tips on how to prepare and check up on oil-fired heating systems before and after flooding:

Preparation before a flood
• If you must evacuate, turn off the heating oil supply valve at the tank before flood waters rise.
• If you must evacuate, turn off furnace or boiler emergency switch.
• Properly installed heating oil tanks are bolted to the ground/floor to ensure they will not move during a flood.

After a flood
• If oilheat equipment has been flooded, be sure to shut off the tank service valve if you did not do so before evacuating.
• Look for any visible structural damage. If the tank has shifted, lines are bent or damaged, or you notice anything else unusual, contact your heating oil retailer immediately.
• Damage to pumps, filters, and electronic controls is a significant problem caused by flooding. Heating oil appliances and equipment that have been underwater should be inspected by your professional retailer before being placed back into service.

Hopefully, no one will have to worry about flooding from Earl’s heavy rain. But if heating oil users anywhere in the Northeast are forced to evacuate their homes, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

In business, “diversification” is an oft-repeated buzzword, but one that certainly deserves its buzz. By offering a wider range of products and/or services, businesses can expand their customer base, increase revenue, and protect themselves from any sudden changes to their industries. This is as true in the heating oil industry as any other—by expanding into other aspects of home energy services, heating oil dealers around the country are securing their market shares and growing their businesses. Atlas Glen-Mor of Chelsea, Massachusetts is one such dealer. In response to customer demand for home energy audits, Atlas technicians were trained and certified as home energy auditors by the Building Performance Institute, and have been busy providing audits ever since. By helping their customers conserve energy and save money on their heating oil and electricity bills, Atlas provides a valuable service and establishes itself as a “one stop shop” for all energy needs. Comprehensive energy services, a rich history, vast resources, and a courteous and professional staff have made Atlas Glen-Mor a leading heating oil provider (and more) in the greater Boston area and the rest of Eastern Massachusetts.

Check out the video profile of Atlas Glen-Mor and see what a professional energy audit looks like.  Watch the video below or on the HeatingOil.com YouTube channel.

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Fleeting positive news on the economy led to big gains on US stock markets, which helped lift oil prices on Wednesday. (images: abcnews.com and Nicholas Whitaker for HeatingOil.com)

A brief spate of economic optimism brought major gains to US stock markets and oil prices yesterday. Increases in Chinese and US manufacturing activity bolstered investors’ hopes that global oil demand would soon improve, and a weak US dollar made oil a more attractive investment to those holding foreign currencies. Resulting jumps in crude and heating oil prices at the NYMEX brought a four-cent increase in retail heating oil prices that carried over into today. Wednesday also brought the release of the EIA’s weekly petroleum inventory reports, which showed modest decreases in gasoline and distillate (a category that includes heating oil) supplies, but a sizable increase in crude supplies tied to a slowdown in refining activity. Supplies of petroleum products regained the market’s focus on Thursday morning, sending prices downward on concerns over future demand and general economic uncertainty.

Today’s average retail heating oil prices in the Northeast is 4 cents higher than Wednesday’s average price.

Crude oil price jumped at the NYMEX today on tidbits of positive economic news that also sent stock markets climbing. (iimage: ft.com)

After dropping sharply to end the month of August yesterday, crude and heating oil prices rose steeply at the NYMEX today, following surging stock markets. News that both US and Chinese manufacturing increased last month gave a major boost to perceptions of the American economy and future global oil demand. This morning’s petroleum inventory report from the Energy Information Administration showed a substantial increase in crude oil supplies and only modest decreases in gasoline and distillate (a category that includes heating oil) supplies last week, but it was brushed aside by traders in favor of new economic hopes spurred by manufacturing data. Record-high crude and oil product inventories and a shaky economy still loom over oil markets and remain important factors in considerations of short- to medium-term crude and heating oil prices. Big market gains brought a four-cent increase in retail heating oil prices around 11 am today, and those gains will likely hold on through tomorrow morning.

Today’s Closing Prices at the NYMEX

Crude oil (October 2010 contract): Up 2.7 percent, $73.91 a barrel
Heating oil (October 2010 contract): Up 2.6 percent

Clear skies like these over Jersey City, NJ will likely become more common following the enactment of new rules requiring lower sulfur content in heating oil. (image: treehugger.com)

New Jersey enacted low-sulfur heating oil mandates on Tuesday, becoming the fourth Northeastern state to require cleaner-burning heating oil. The state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which began considering the new rules in January, announced their official adoption with a statement from DEP commissioner Bob Martin, NorthJersey.com reported.

Martin said that the rules will make New Jersey “a much healthier place to live,” by establishing a “strict but reasonable time frame to allow industry to be able to install new equipment and prepare to meet these standards.” The rules require heating oil to contain no more than 500 parts per million (ppm) of sulfur by July 2014 and 15 ppm by July 2016. Current regulations allow sulfur content of up to 2,000 ppm. The rules will apply not only to heating oil sold to residential customers, but also to refineries that make heating oil for sales in other states, helping to spread cleaner-burning heating oil throughout the region. The new regulations will also help the state comply with federal clean air requirements that it has violated.

According to government analysis, the regulations could drive up the price of heating oil by up to nine cents per gallon, but those cost increases will be offset in the long run by savings on cleaning and maintenance of oil-fired heating systems. Low-sulfur fuel burns more efficiently and places less strain on boilers and furnaces. Like its counterparts in Maine, Connecticut, and New York, the New Jersey heating oil industry supported the low-sulfur mandates early on and was involved in crafting the specific rules and implementation time frame. Scott Ross, associate director of the New Jersey Petroleum Council representative told NorthJersey.com,

It’s a reasonable time frame to meet the demand needs. We participated in the rule-making process, which began with the last administration, and we’re fairly happy with the outcome.

According to the DEP, low-sulfur requirements will make heating oil emissions equivalent to those generated by burning natural gas. Reduced sulfur emissions will also save the state millions in medical costs by decreasing the need to treat asthma and other respiratory problems caused by low air quality.

New Jersey’s move to clean up heating oil emissions is just the latest sign of the times for the heating oil industry: a cleaner, greener fuel is required to secure heating oil’s status as a staple heating fuel in the Northeast. Lower-sulfur heating oil and biodiesel heating oil (commonly known as Bioheat) have obvious health and environmental benefits, and have been proven to improve the efficiency of most heating systems. Although not all Northeastern states have required cleaner heating oil yet, the industry is ready and eager to evolve to remain an important energy source in the greener world of the future.